'Bade' brings the dead to the afterlife

'Bade' brings the dead to the afterlife

Tri Vivi Suryani, Contributor, Denpasar

Cremation is one of the most important life-cycle rituals
within the Hindu religion.

Balinese Hindus believe a human body is comprised of five
basic elements -- fire, earth, air, water and ether which are
locally called panca maha butha, and the burning of bodies into
ashes is believed to easily release the soul or atman from
earthly things and returned to God.

And during the cremation ritual, the wadah or bade -- a tower-
like structure plays an important role since it is used to carry
a dead body before it is purified in the cremation ritual.

A bade, be it small and modest or large and elaborate, will
always be used in any ngaben ceremony. The bade is usually made
of wood heavily decorated with a myriad of ornaments including
dragon-like figures such as Naga Basuki and Naga Anantaboga.

A bade is a multi-tier structure, sometimes up to 11 tiers for
one tower. However, only royal and high-caste families are
allowed to use an eleven-tier bade while lower-castes may be
allowed to use three to nine tiers.

I Nyoman Singgih Wikarman writes in a book Ngaben Sarat that
the first three tiers represent the power of the three worlds:
the upper, the middle and the underworld. Each tier represents
the 11 levels of heaven and the world mountain Maha Meru.

Ketut Buda, a bade artisan from Banjar Abian Kapas in
Denpasar, said that creating a bade requires specific skills
inherited from senior artisans.

"Bade is one of the most important aspects in the death
ritual. We have to be precise and careful in making a bade.
Otherwise, we could encounter unexpected things," Buda believed.

Buda started his profession as a bade maker at the age of 20,
learning the skill from his own grandfather, I Ketut Regug. By
making a bade, he also learned by heart the entire steps of a
death ritual.

In addition to bade, a ngaben ceremony also uses large
hollowed out animal statues as coffins, mostly in the form of a
bull for a man, or a cow for a woman. Other animal figures could
be lions, deers or elephants.

The statue/coffin is made of a solid piece of wood. It can be
painted white, black or red depending on the social and family
status of the person. The white bull, for instance, is only made
to carry the remains of a Brahman (priest) and the black one is
made for certain clans or families. The red bull is only used for
the pande (artisan) clan.

Buda's talent is spread by word of mouth. A single-tier bade
can be completed within two or three days, while a multi-tier
bade could keep him working for three weeks. His wife, Wayan
Sukri and his two sons help him in the business. Each bade costs
between Rp 1.5 million and Rp 10 million to make.

"All the materials are now very expensive," Busa said, adding
that he needed lavish velvet fabrics, paper, wood and other
decorative ornaments in creating a bade.

Despite the surging price of materials, Buda has to maintain
the quality of his work, and his reputation as well.

"We must master and abide by the centuries-old rules in making
a bade," he added.

He seemed to disagree with the current changes made by some
artisans. "Some artisans put wheels under the bade. I think it
violates the existing rules," he said. "I am afraid the changes
will reduce the sanctity of a ritual ceremony."

A gigantic bade is usually carried by dozens or even hundreds
of people when proceeding from the home of the deceased to the
cemetery where the body is to be cremated. To ease people's
burden, a number of artisans have modified the bade by putting
wooden wheels under it.

Prominent Hindu scholar I Ketut Wiana, however, supported the
changes so long as they had positive impacts on the Hindu
disciples.

"In religious life, we should adjust to any dynamic changes in
society," said Wiana, adding that the use of wheels under a bade
should not be considered a problem.

Beautiful ornaments, he said, might help by covering up the
wheels.

"People tend to argue that a cremation ceremony is a communal
work, a representation of a solid society," he said. "By adding
the wheels, the sense of communality may not be reduced. They can
pull the bade together."

Wiana would even agree if people used a car in a cremation
procession -- if they think it's efficient and inexpensive.

"The most important thing is their sincerity in performing the
ritual for their respected family member."